England vs Germany
European giants England and Germany face off one more time in the UEFA Nations League group stage. These two nations were once favoured by the UEFA Nations League 2022 odds to move on to the knockout phase, but only one of them can advance.
Hungary are the pacesetters in Group A3 with seven points while Germany are right behind them with six. They are followed by Italy, who have five points, and England are at rock bottom with just two.
Prior to this game, Germany host Hungary in what should be an intriguing battle for the top spot, while Italy can dump the wounded Lions into second tier for good on Friday.
Regardless of the results in those games, this encounter between England and Germany is still a must-see since both countries will use this to prepare for the World Cup this November.
Read on below as SBOTOP previews this highly-anticipated showdown.
Talking Points
Gareth Southgate facing England lineup dilemmas
Unless England do pull off two huge wins against Italy and Germany, they’re going to have a tougher draw looking ahead at the Euro 2024 qualifiers.
Given their poor run of UEFA Nations League 2022 results, they’ll likely end up at Pot B in the upcoming Euro draw, which may lead to them being possibly grouped with Spain, Sweden, Turkey, and Northern Ireland.
As far as the World Cup is concerned, Gareth Southgate is simply preparing his team and a couple of positive results should boost their morale.
Gareth Southgate admitted that injuries derailed their UEFA Nations League campaign and it doesn’t help that some of his players have struggled to feature for their respective mother clubs this season.
Luke Shaw, Harry Maguire, and Ben Chilwell are all glued to the bench at Manchester United and Chelsea, while Kalvin Phillips is dealing with a shoulder knock.
Liverpool skipper Jordan Henderson was recently called up after dealing with a hamstring problem. The 32-year-old strengthens their midfield with his leadership and quality.
Interestingly, Southgate added Ivan Toney to his 28-man squad, favouring him over the in-form Jadon Sancho and Red Devils teammate Marcus Rashford.
The Brentford hitman will fight for a starting spot up front, but he’ll face stiff competition with the likes of Harry Kane, Bukayo Saka, Raheem Sterling, and Phil Foden present.
So many moving parts, so little time for Gareth Southgate.
Key losses for Germany
Hansi Flick is also likely to rotate his squad in their next few games as they’ve been dealt with a tough hand.
The Bayern Munich pair of Manuel Neuer and Leon Goretzka will miss Germany’s next matches as both tested positive for COVID-19. On the other hand, Borussia Dortmund midfielder Julian Brandt pulled out because of a flu.
Jamal Musiala was recently forced to cut a training session short with Die Mannschaft because he was hobbling following a sliding tackle by Thomas Muller. Reports suggest that the issue isn’t serious, but Flick would probably err on the side of caution in handling his rising star.
The 19-year-old has been a bright spot for Bayern Munich this season, tallying four goals and one assist in six appearances so far.
Germany are fresh from a dominant 5-2 victory against Italy in the last time out. With scorers Joshua Kimmich, Ilkay Gundogan, Thomas Muller, and Timo Werner featuring again, Germany have considerable ammunition to counter England even if they’ll miss several men.
History
The head-to-heads between Germany and England are as close as it gets, which just goes to show that we have another fun matchup to look forward to.
Germany own the slight edge over England, having won 15 out of the 34 matches played between the two countries. Meanwhile, England have won 14 times and the other five matches ended in draws.
One of those draws was their reverse fixture here in the UEFA Nations League group stage last June as both nations scored one goal apiece. Jonas Hofmann gave Die Mannschaft the lead five minutes after half-time, but Harry Kane snatched the point for the Three Lions with his converted penalty at the 88th minute.
Prior to June, England eliminated Germany with a scoreline of 2-0 in the Euro 2020 Round of 16. After a scoreless first half, Raheem Sterling gave the Three Lions the lead for good and Harry Kane was a thorn to Germany’s side once more.
In terms of recent form, Germany have won once and drawn three times in their last four matches, while England have lost twice and drawn twice in the said stretch.
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